RB 'Vertiginous Thrill' reviews all 'Vertiginous Thrill' reviews 'Por vos Muero' reviews Cope in reviews Bussell in reviews recent RB reviews

I saw the Enduring Images bill on the 6th. “Vertiginous Thrill” didn't leave me with one, as it has when I've seen the San Francisco Ballet perform it. For one, the costumes are made for those in expensive seats, rather than those of us in the gods... And SFB dancers have a rich enough diet of Balanchine that they attack the positions and the enchainements with the clarity and speed required by Thrill. There's something about how they need to be ahead of themselves more. Ideally, one is left with an image of ice skating – skimming across the surface, while underneath the legs are moving at a blurred pace.

In the Middle was invigorating and compares to my memories of SFB performances (long ago). Darcy Bussell was astounding, really pushing the edge in a wonderfully unaffected way. Although the extent of risk-taking was apparent, I trusted her enough that I could relax and be drawn into it.

My companion and I discussed how the men moved so differently in Duato's pieces than they do in the standard fare. Extreme attention to detail with a flow of energy and strength revealed a very different side of them as dancers (especially Jonathan Cope, who I've seen more than the others). While watching Por vos Muero, I had a some scary flashback moments to Michael Jackson's Thriller an MTV gestural style kept popping into my mind (having been thinking about issues of postmodernism and consumer culture recently). The design elements, musicality, use of weight and quite unusual "ballet" costuming managed to knock away those mtv images, though. I've not seen Duato's work before, and can see the comparisons to Kylian, Bruce and Eks.